Grandpa made me a do it....100 Half Marathons

100 Half Marathons (5 Years), Half Marathon Club

Paula Elaine Pearson

Back in 2005 I decided to run a full marathon in honor of my grandpa Daasch that passed away suddenly and unexpected.  I decided I want to do “something BIG, and outdoorsy, for him” to celebrate his life and what he taught me growing up.  I was never a “active” person or even an athlete, my brother took care of that part.  I was a artist and band geek.  So researching things on line about how to train for a marathon and “how to even run” was way out of my comfort zone.  I remember not being able to even jog even down the block with out feeling like I was going to pass out and parts of my body rubbing raw against each other.  I thought several times to my self, this is awful, why would anyone run anywhere.  Let alone 26.2 miles straight!  

So I started looking at what marathon I wanted to do as this was going to be a ONE and DONE.  (so I thought at the time)  I wanted to do a marathon in a warm place and also give me time to train.  I pick Walt Disney Marathon Weekend in Jan 2006.  I did my run/walk/jogs.  I also thought it be a good idea to do a half to see how training was going but the Indy 500 had already sold out so I just said well…..thats OK, i just go straight to the Marathon. OUCH!

I picked a marathon because I wanted to do something physical and mental that my grandfather would think was cool.  You see, hes the one that introduced us kids to the outdoors.  He taught us to enjoy nature, how to skip rocks across the pond, catch frogs, catch lightening bugs, feed the ducks, ride horse back, pick and tend to the garden, ice skate and sledding, and riding bikes.  He did it all, even took all of us camping.  So an outdoors event that challenged the mind and body was a perfect way to celebrate him.  

The Disney Marathon….well I finished.  It was not easy, nor was I even trained and ready for it.  I learned a lot about running and for some reason did many more marathons after that.  

When we moved to colorado back in 2013 I decided I wanted to continue to honor him.  I set my goal out to run 100 half marathons in 3 years, well that was way too many in that time frame.   After I did 26 in one year, I decided I needed to cut back a little.  In Colorado you can do a half marathon every sat and sun pretty much all year, except Nov, Dec and Jan.  

So when I run, and not every run is a good one.  I talk to grandpa in my head A LOT.  You can see in photos that I carry a picture of him with me.  

Sometimes I think he talks back when the sun comes thru the trees and lands on my face, or when a few snow flakes land on my nose, or when I feel a gust of wind at my back pushing me up the hill.  All signs I know hes with me and saying “Good Job Punkin’”!   

So here’s to you grandpa, see you on the trails!  I love you and miss you every day.

Paula Elaine

“Punkin’”

*Some random photos, too many to post with 56/100 so far! :)